Pop-Tarts GIVEAWAY #2

This is a compensated review by BlogHer and Pop Tarts.

Last post I shared a secret about our morning time routine: Pop-Tarts.

So, I should probably share another secret with you: I love them too and having been a Pop-Tarts follower for years.
Growing up in a family of 6, Pop-Tarts were sort of a luxury and we each got our own special box in our Christmas stocking. Dreamy.

So when I got to college and could buy/eat whatever I wanted Pop-Tarts became part of my on-the-go lunch routine. They were the perfect thing to snack on during a boring lecture. And since I opted for the low-fat versions, I felt pretty good about the habit. Of course, if I wasn't careful walking to class with a bag full of heavy books and yummy Pop-Tarts, the poor pastries were munched up when I opened the bag.
And the same thing is true now when I throw a packet in my purse for the kids to snack on.
I'm always trying to protect the Pop-Tarts from getting smashed in my purse. Silly, I know. But these are things I think about!
So with this Pop-Tarts campaign in mind, I put my creative skills to use and created a better way for transporting your Pop-Tarts (or any fun treat).....
a Pop-Tarts pouch!
Made with Vinyl (for easy cleaning/wiping) I inserted plastic canvas into the pouch to give it support and protect the treats inside.
The patriotic colors were really fun to sew with and when I brought them out for the kids, it felt like a party. They were both excited to see what was inside their vinyl pouch.
it's......
Pop-Tarts! Thanks Mom!
They immediately started chowing.
The pouches were perfect for our favorite kid-time activity.....just hanging out around town or going to the park. Wherever we are, Lucy wants to stop and "have a picnic". And so, we did just that:
We ate our favorite Vanilla Milkshake Pop-Tarts,
inspected them to see which sprinkle colors we could find,
danced and jumped around,
and had fun being kids (me included). I got a pouch too, with a big red bow on top.
But I'll be sharing more about the Pop-Tart pouches, with a complete tutorial, later.
Right now, let's talk about you winning a $100 Visa Giftcard!

As stated in the previous Pop-Tarts post, this is a two-part Giveaway series. So the comments from this giveaway and the last giveaway will be combined for ONE big winner.

Giveaway Rules:
* Leave a comment
* Leave your EMAIL ADDRESS in your comment.
* Only ONE entry per person.
* If you forget something and need to leave a second comment, go back and DELETE your first comment.
* Only open to US RESIDENTS, 18 years or older.
* Comments from this post and the previous Giveaway post will be combined for ONE winner.
* Winner will be picked via random.org and emailed with additional info.
* Giveaway will run for one week and ends SUNDAY 7/4/10 at 6pm (Central Time).

Check out how other bloggers are enjoying their Pop-Tarts HERE.
And you can see all the very official rules for the contest HERE.

Go browse the Sprinklings site and find your favorite Ice Cream Shoppe flavor. You'll feel like a kid again too.

Pop-Tarts GIVEAWAY #1

This is a compensated review by BlogHer and Pop Tarts.

Often you guys ask how I get multiple things done in a day. So I'll let you in on a small secret: Pop-Tarts.

I'm not joking. Since I stay up way too late most nights, the morning routine usually begins with me sleeping-in till 8:30, the kids waking up and playing on their own, and dad handing a Pop-Tart to each child.

They love it! In fact, they each have their preference: Low-fat Frosted Strawberry for Owen and Graham Cracker S'mores for Lucy.

So when Pop-Tarts contacted me about their new Ice Cream Shoppe/Sprinkling flavors, we just had to try them.
Lucy loves anything with sprinkles on top. So she and Vanilla Milkshake were destined to be friends.
We popped open a box, smiled at the cute colors,
and started eating!
And then for the next week, the kids constantly asked for "Vanilla Pop-Tarts please!"
I'd say the new flavor went over well.
and it got my creative mind churning too.

Of course Pop-Tarts are yummy just on their own (we don't even bother with toasting them, though that's tasty too). But I'm a girl that lovvvves treats that are cold (which is odd since I hate to be cold). So why not go totally overboard and turn them into a summer-time treat??! Something for a 4th of July celebration? Totally kid friendly? (who am I joking, they're for me too).
all I had to do was mention "ice cream" and Lucy was at the table ready to help.

There's an entire line-up of yummy Ice Cream Shoppe flavors that would work well here (like Hot Fudge Sundae, which my kids are in love with now too) but we stuck with our Vanilla Milkshake packet:
First, you cut off the edges (snack on them later, while the kids aren't looking)
Cut each Pop-Tart into fourths (no rocket science here and really no need for step-by-step instructions, I just love an excuse to take close-up photos)
Grab your favorite ice cream. We went with a very home-made tasting Strawberry. Let it soften a bit so it doesn't crack your Pop-Tart and use one of those mini scoopers (also great for scooping cookie dough),
place it right onto the Pop-Tart pieces,
place another one on top,
and three cheers for Ice Cream Pop-Tart Bites!
Seriously, they're really good. I was being a bad photographer....going back and forth between ice cream Pop-Tart bites and melty-ice-cream-finger camera handling.
Totally worth it.
You can find some other fun recipes on the Pop-Tarts site, some geared toward the 4th of July coming up!
Now you'll need to go buy your own box, cause ours is empty.
OR.....
Enter our 2-part Pop-Tarts GIVEAWAY here to win a $100 VISA giftcard!
Think how many Pop-Tarts you could buy with that? Holy moly.

Since this is a 2-part blog series featuring Pop-Tarts, I'll be combining the comments from THIS giveaway post and also the NEXT giveaway post (coming next week) for one grand giveaway prize of....you know.....$100! So there will only be one winner. That winner will be posted after the next giveaway post has run it's course.

Giveaway Rules:
* Leave a comment
* Leave your EMAIL ADDRESS in your comment.
* Only ONE entry per person.
* If you forget something and need to leave a second comment, go back and DELETE your first comment.
* Only open to US RESIDENTS, 18 years or older.
* Comments from this post and the next Giveaway post will be combined for ONE winner.
* Winner will be picked via random.org and emailed with additional info.
* Giveaway will run for one week and ends SUNDAY 6/27/10 at 6pm (Central Time).

Check out what other bloggers are doing with their Pop-Tarts HERE.
And you can see all the very official rules for the contest HERE.

mmmm. Yummmy.

vinyl